Surgical brace



Sept 27, 1966 E. L. JEWETT 3,274,996

SURGICAL BRACE Filed .Sept l, 1961 1N V EN TOR.

Eder/v5 4. ./Ewfrr MLHLM A TTDP/VEYS United States PtC'Ilf 0 M 3,274,996 SURGICAL BRACE U Eugene L. Jewett, Maitland, Fla., assignor to Florida Brace Corporation, Winter Park, Fla., a corporation of Florida Filed Sent. 1, 1961. Ser. No. 135,510 4 Claims. (Cl. 12S-78) This invention relates to a surgical brace embodying improvements upon the structure disclosed in -my United States Patent No. 2,582,930, dated January 15, 1952.

The type of brace disclosed provides three points of pressure in hyperextension cases and permits patients to be ambulatory, whereas Isuch patients were at one -time conned in casts. The particular hyperextension brace of the present invention features sternal pad bars of peculiar form which in curving forwardly, extend almost horizontally forwardly from the upper ends of the lateral torso pads, thence curving almost vertically upwardly to the level of the sternal pad. Thus the upper portions of the sternal pad bars are in substantial parallelism. The sternal pad is mounted on a 'frame member adjustably connecting these bars and is desirably tiltable to be selfadjusting in its engagement with the patients chest.

The lumbar pad is carried on two straps which encircle the patientsback and are adjustably iixed to the metal fra-me members at each side of the patient. In order that a single adjustment may take care of both of these straps,

an equalizing bar is pivoted to the two straps and con-v nected with a single adjusting means for subjecting these straps to tension. The adjusting device comprises a sleeve through which the end of the adjustable strap extends, such end having teeth with which a worm journaled within the sleeve is in mesh. The sleeve is in detachable engagement with a hooked bracket on the frame of the brace so that the brace can readily be released and reconnected without interference with the preset adjustment.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of a brace embodying the invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view on a reduced scale of vthe brace shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary detail view of the sternal pad on a greatly enlarged scale, portions being broken away in horizontal section.

FIG. 4 is a detail view taken in section on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary detail view taken in section on the line 5 5 of FIG. l.

The brace frame includes the sternal bars 5 and 6, the pubic bars 7 and 8 an-d connecting parts. The sternal bars are allochiral counterparts but, in particular detail, differ from any previously known. Each has an upright portion disposed at the side of the patients torso and adjustably connected to a re-enforcing bar 10 within the torso side pad 11 or 12, as the case may be. From the upright portion 9 the frame member extends almost horizontally forwardly and around the thorax of the patient at 90 and thence it extends almost vertically at 13 and again extends horizontally at its terminal portion 130. Like reference characters are applied to the two frame elements 5 and 6.

The terminal portions of these frame elements are adjustably connected with each other by a transverse plate member at 14 to which is screwed a bracket 15 having a rearwardly projecting finger 16 extending through, and interlocked with, a metal re-enforcing plate 17 in the sternal pad 18. Behind the plate 17 is a carrier-ply 19 which carries padding lmaterial 20 of sponge r-ubber or the like, the re-enforcing plate 17 and plates 19 and 20 being enveloped in a jacket 21 which may conveniently be made of artificial leather or any appropriate material.

3,274,996 Patented Sept. 27, 1966 ICC Y patient, or some of the screws 23 which mount the bracket 16 may be extended as shown in FIG. 4 to abut the pad and thereby to prevent it from pivoting counterclock- Wise from the position in which it is shown in FIG. 4, while permitting it to pivot clockwise from the position illustrated in that View.

The frame bars 5 and 6 above described are connectedV through the re-enforcing plates 10 of the torso side-pads 11 and 12 with the frame bars 25 and 26 which support the pubic pad 27. Frame bars 25 and 26 are not essenj tially changed from prior practice. The sternal pad V18 and the pubic pad 27 provide the two forward pressure points between which lumbar pad pressure is applied from the rear. Y

' The stra-ps `28 and 29 which adjustably connect the lumbar pad 30 to the side members of the frame are desirably made of metal to be nonextensible in use. Their end portions 31 and 32 are adjustably connected with the left side pubic support bar 26 'by screws 33 and 34 shown in dotted lines in FIG. l. At the patients right the ends of the straps 28and 29 are pivotally connected by rivets 35 and 36 with an equalizing bar 37 pivoted at 38 to an adjustingrstrap 39 which has a series of teeth 40 of the type used in adjusting a hose clamp. The adjusting strap 39 extends through a sleeve 43 in which there is journaled a worm 44 whose teeth mesh with the teeth 40 of the strap for adjustment purposes. The worm 44 projects from the sleeve and `has a handle 45 to facilitate its rotation Within the sleeve.

The `sleeve 43 thus adjustably fixed to strap 39 is detachably in thrust bearing contact with a hooked bracket 46 projecting laterally from the upper end of the pubic pad support bar 25 and behind which the strap 39 is releasably hooked. Means is provided at 48 -for locking the handle 45 both to secure the worm 44 in adjusted position and to. secure the sleeve 43 to the bracket. However, if the lock 48 is released, it is a simple matter to disengage the strap and sleeve 43 from the upwardly opening hook of bracket 46 to remove the brace without changing its adjustment.

With the brace in place, and adjusted to subject the lumbar region to pressure of Ipad 30, a condition of hyperextension can readily be maintained without impeding the patients freedom of movement. In this respect the peculiar oiset in the sternal bars 5 and 6 of the frame of the lbrace is of great advantage, as is the lioating sternal pad 18 and the easily detachable connection between a single adjusting strap 39 and the bracket 46.

I claim:

1. A surgical brace comprising laterally spaced torso side pads; frame means connecting the side pads and comprising sternal bars and pubic bars connected with the side pads, a lumbar pad having stra-p means connecting it with said frame means, a sternal pad having means connecting it with the sternal bars and a pubic pad having mean-s connecting it with the pubic bars; the sternal bars extending upwardly from the respective side pads and thence extending substantially directly forwardly and curvilinearly toward each other and thence extending upwardly in approximate parallelism to the level of connection with the sternal pad, the sternal pad comprising an internal plate having an opening and the means connecting it with the sternal bars including a finger extending int-o said opening, the iinger and plate having marginally notched portions in interlocked connection, the plate being self-adjustable with respect to the iinger.

2. A brace according to claim 1 in which the means It may be enfor connecting the sternal pad withthe sternal .bars further includes a frame member attached to the Vrespective ment of the 'sternal pad upon said finger in one direction Y of tilt respecting said member.

3. A brace accordingto claim 1 in which the strap means comprises a pair of vertically spaced straps, .an equalizer link pivotally connected with adjacent ends of the straps, an extension stra-p connected with the equalizer link and means adjustable onthe extension strap for detachably and 'adjustably securing the extension strap to the frame means, said frame meansbeing provided with an upwardly open hook and said strap having a terminal por-- tion` provided with screw threads on which'said adjust# able means is threaded, Lsaid portionVY being freely movable into and Yfrom'said hook Without changing the position of the kadjustable means on the screw threads,sai d hook providing an abut-ment engaged bythe adjustable means when the extension strap is disposed in the hook.

4. A surgical brace comprising laterally spaced torso side pads; frame means connecting the side pads and comprising sternal barsy and pubicl bars connectedrwith the side pads, a lumbarpad having strap means connecting it with said frame means, a sternal pad having meansY connecting it with the sternal bars, and a pubic -pad having lmeans connecting it with thek pubic bars; the sternal bars extending upwardlyfrom the respective side Vpads and thence extending substantially directly -forwardly and curvilinearly toward eachother and thence extending upwardly to the level of connection with the sternal pad; the lumbar pad strap means being provided with threads and a sleeve adjustably threaded thereon, and the frame means including a `iitting having an upwardly open hook inwhich said last mentioned strap meansgengaged andV from which it is freely disengageable, the hook having a surface `abutted by said adjustable sleeve to limit rearward movement of the last mentioned strap means, wherei by t-o hold the last mentioned stra-1: means under tension forpressing the lumbar padagainst the back of a patient.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED 'STATES PATENTS 9,826 7/1853 Abbe -.7 1 v128--78Y 1,640,229 ,8/1927. Baltzer 128-105 1,928,474 9/ 1933 Bam-benek 24-70. 1,974,283 9/ 1934 l Kendrick 12S-,96` 2,060,173 11/1936 Bus 1n-,nfe1dt V 128578'k 2,395,273 2/ 1946 v Hll'etal. c .24-274 2,573,032Y 10/1951) Lambert 412S-80.v 2,582,930 1/1952 Jewett 128-78 2,760,486 8/ 1956 Ward 128-78` Y 2,808,050 10/ 1957 Ward 12S-78 ,Y FOREIGN PATENTS 55,098 1/1891 ,Germany OTHER. REFERENCES l RICHARDA. GAUDET, Primary Examiner.

JORDAN FRANKLIN, Examiner.

J. w. HINEY, R. D. TEGTMEYER, Assistant Examiners.. 

1. A SURGICAL BRACE COMPRISING LATERALLY SPACED TORSO SIDE PADS; FRAME MEANS CONNECTING THE SIDE PADS AND COMPRISING STERNAL BARS AND PUBIC BARS CONNECTED WITH THE SIDE PADS, A LUMBAR PAD HAVING STRAP MEANS CONNECTING IT WITH SAID FRAME MEANS, A STERNAL PAD HAVING MEANS CONNECTING IT WITH THE STERNAL BARS AND A PUBIC PAD HAVING MEANS CONNECTING IT WITH THE PUBIC BARS; THE STERNAL BARS EXTENDING UPWARDLY FROM THE RESPECTIVE SIDE PADS AND THENCE EXTENDING SUBSTANTIALLY DIRECTLY FORWARDLY AND CURVILINEARLY TOWARD EACH OTHER AND THENCE EXTENDING UPWARDLY IN APPROXIMATE PARALLELISM TO THE LEVEL OF CONNECTION WITH THE STERNAL PAD, THE STERNAL PAD COMPRISING AN INTERNAL PLATE HAVING AN OPENING AND THE MEANS CONNECTING IT WITH THE STERNAL BARS INCLUDING A FINGER EXTENDING INTO SAID OPENING, THE FINGER AND PLATE HAVING MARGINALLY NOTCHED PORTIONS IN INTERLOCKED CONNECTION, THE PLATE BEING SELF-ADJUSTABLE WITH RESPECT TO THE FINGER. 